The Shift of Marketing in The Property Industry﻿

The days of traditional, print-driven marketing is long gone for the property industry. According to Placester, 90% of all real estate buyers use the Internet when searching for property and 70% reported that they would be more likely to build relationships with companies who provide custom content rather than those that don’t.

In a time where internet noise couldn’t be any louder, it’s no secret that the need for relevant, captivating content is larger than life. Adopters of the strategic approach, better known as content marketing, are engaging their audiences, increasing brand awareness and positioning themselves as real estate industry thought leaders and influencers. Personalizing and fostering meaningful relationships is now the essence of successful marketing strategies. Hence, the property industry challenges brokers and agents to create high-quality content that fits with their clients’ needs.

Now that they have content, where do they market it? The digital universe offers a vast variety of choices – from websites and blogs to social media and news portals. Almost everyone around the world has jumped on the social media bandwagon. In a study of online advantage and how digital media is influencing businesses everywhere, they discovered that one in three people regularly use social media as their source of news and current events. However, it is not enough to create social media profiles and sign up on blogging platforms. It is important to make your presence known. Brand awareness is crucial in connecting with the community.

The fact that social media is an effective advertising channel is not news to most real estate marketers. However, many organizations still do not fully comprehend what a driving force these platforms have become.

An array of fresh offerings from major networks including new and improved geofencing, retargeting and unit options have made it possible to reach out to audiences more precisely and more efficiently than ever before. The key to capitalizing on this is to develop advanced social campaigns which make use of the full range of tools and formats. Companies that step up their game in 2019 and invest in brilliant social approaches are likely to see an impressive return on investment on their expenditure.

One of the most evident challenges for real estate marketing is that clients need to have a look and feel of the property in person before they make a final choice. The good news is that augmented reality and virtual reality are elements that now can be added to digital marketing. There are several tools that let developers or even negotiators produce virtual tours of properties. This allows clients to be presented with an outlook on properties while still in the construction stage.

Virtual tours of the neighbourhood are now deemed necessary. The reason for this is that tours could give prospective clients a feel of their future living area. They enable them to comprehend how it would feel like if they live in the property and the neighbourhood. Technology firms are also releasing toolkits that make augmented offerings a lot easier. This allows for augmented technology becomes more accessible in 2019.

It has been forecasted that the millennial market will account for more than forty-three percent of home buyers for the upcoming future. Moreover, the largest batch of millennials will turn 30 in 2020. That means that shifts in the residential market will largely be dependent on this younger generation. Ultimately, the preferences of millennial buyers will likely be the biggest driving force of the property industry in the years to come.

Dr A.J Minai is a Chief Marketing Officer of Subture. He has spoken at over 170 events since 2013 and being listed as one of the Top 43 Inspirational LinkedIn Icons to follow in Malaysia by Marketing In Asia magazine in 2018. Follow him on LinkedIn and website.